Romulus and Remus Picture

According to roman mythology, the founders of Rome were Romulus and Remus. The twin-brothers were the supposed sons of the god Mars and the priestess Rhea Silvia. The story begins with the dethroning of Numitor (their grandfather and king of the ancient Italian city of Alba Longa), by his brother Amulius. Numitor's daughter, Rhea Silvia, was forbidden to marry so she would not produce heirs to the throne. However, the god Mars visited her and conceived two sons, romulus and remus.

As soon as they were born, Silvia was imprisoned and the infants are cast into the Tiber River. They survived and set ashore under a fig tree where they are found by a she-wolf, who instead of killing them, looked after them and fed them with her milk. The she-wolf was also helped by a woodpecker who brought them food. Interesting enough both these animals were sacred to Mars.